Str eet-car coupling



(No Model.)

0. A. MOLDAL.

STEEET UAR COUPLING.

No. 254,359. Patented Feb. 28,1882.

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ATTORNEYS.

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f UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OLE A. A. MOLDAL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

STR'EET-CAR COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 254,359, dated February 28, 1882,

Application filed January 5, 1882.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OLE A. A. MoLDAL, of Ohicago,in the county ofOook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Horse Street-ar Couplings, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptionr Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a side elevation of my improvement, partly in section. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a sectionalplan view-of the same. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the pin-lock. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the pin-lock, showing a modification of the lock-rod. Fig. 6is a sectional side elevation, showing another form of pin-lock. Fig. 7 is a sectional front elevation of the same.

This invention relates to couplings for connectin g horses to street-cars, and has for its object to promote convenience and safety in the use of said couplings.

The invention consists in the combination, with the curved arm having a recessed head and the couplin g-pinhavin g an annular groove, of a disk having a recess and a disk-operating rod, whereby the coupling-pin can be readily locked and released; also, in the combination, with the disk-operating rod, of the hinged handle and its guide-bars, whereby the said rod can be readily operated, locked, and unlocked; also, in the combination, with the curved arm having lugs and a recessed head and the coupling-pin having an annular groove, of a hinged dog having a tongue at its forward end and a hook at its rear end, whereby the said couplingpin will be securelylocked and can'be readilyunlocked; and, also, in the combination, with the draw-bar, of a projection having a shoulder at its forward side and its rear side inclined, whereby the double-tree will be prevented from sliding rearward, while being allowed to slide forward freely, as will be hereinafter fully described.

A represents the platform,B the dash-board, and O the draw-bar, of a street-car. The forward end of the draw-bar C is widened and flattened to serve as a support for the doubleor head.

(No model.)

tree D, and in the said'draw-bar, near the said widened and flattened end, is formed a hole, E, to receive the coupling-pin F.

To the draw-bar O, at a little distance in the rear of the pin-hole E, is attached, or upon it is formed, an arm, G, which is curved upward and forward, and has a hole, H, formed in its forward end or head to receive the coupling. pin F, the said arm G being made of such a length that the pin-hole H of the said arm will be directly over the pin-hole E of the draw-bar G. The curved arm G is made with sufficient rise to form a space to receive the staple I of the double-tree D and allow the said doubletree to have the necessary play. The forward end or head of the curved arm G is thickened, and has a recess, J, formed in its rear side to receive the edge of adisk or plate, K, pivoted to the said arm G in the rear of the said end The disk K is attached to the lower end of a rod, L, which lower end may be forked, as shown in Fig. 4, or straight, as shown in Fig. 5. In the former case the disk Kis pivoted to the arm. G by a center bolt, M, and in the latter case bythe downward extension of the rod L. The disk K is made of such'a size that its edge will enter an annular groove, N, in the coupling-pin F a little distance below its head, so as to lock the said pin securely in place.

In one side of the disk Kis formed a recess, 0, of such a size that when the disk K is turned to bring the recess .Onext the pin F the said pin can be inserted and withdrawn freely. The rod L passes up through a guidehole in an arm or bar, P, attached to the top rail, Q, of the dash-board B,and has a handle, R, hinged to its upper end at the upper side of the said arm or bar P, in such a position that when the said handle R is turned down upon one side of the barP the recess O will be turned, away from the pin F and the said pin will be locked in place, and when the said handle is turned down upon the other side of the said bar P the recess 0 will be turned toward the pin F, and the said pin can be inserted and withdrawn freely. The handleR is guidedinto place and protected by a bar, S, attached to the bar P, at the outer side of the rod L, and at right angles with the said bar P. The coup- ICO ling-pinF is raised and lowered by a chain, T, the lower end of which is attached to the head of the said pin F, and its upper end is attached to the end of the bar P, so that the said chain will always be in place and ready for use. With this construction the horses can be instantly disconnected from the car by reversing the handle R to unlock the couplingpin F and. pulling upon the chain T to raise the said coupling-pin F and release the doubletree D.

If desired, the disk K and rod L can be re placed by a dog, U, pivoted at the upper part of its forward end to and between twolugs,V, formed upon the rear corners of the head of the curved arm G by a bolt, W. Upon the lower part of the forward end of the dog U is formed a tongue, X, which passes through the recess J in the head of the curved arm G and enters the annular groove N in the couplingpin F to lock the said coupling-pin in place. The dogUpasses through a slot in the curved arm G, and is extended downward and rearward'to give it sufficient weight to hold its tongue X in the groove N of the couplingpin F. The lower edge of the dog U is curved or inclined, so that when the double-tree is raised and drawn back the staple I will strike and raise the rear part of the dogU and withdraw the tongue X from the groove N of the pin F, allowing the said pin to be withdrawn, releasing the double-tree. The rear part of the dog U is kept from being raised too high by a stoppin, Y, inserted in a hole in the lower rear part of the said dog U, and which, when the said dog is raised, strikes against the lower side of the curved arm G.

Upon the upper part of the rear end of the dog U is formed a hook, Z, which the driver can take hold of with his switch-hook to operate the said dog and release the coupling-pin F when the double-tree is under a draft-strain, so that the said coupling-pin can be withdrawn without raising the double-tree. This arrangement is especially useful when the horses become unmanageable and it is advisable to detach them from the car.

If desired, the rear part of the dog may be slotted and arranged to straddle the curved arm G.

When the dog Uis used a projection a, should be attached to or formed upon the widened and flattened forward end of the draw-bar G a little in front of the pin-hole E, so that the rear edge of the doubletree D will rest against the forward side or shoulder of the said projection a, while the coupling-pin F is passed through the staple I to prevent the double-tree from moving back and tripping the dog U accidentally. The inner or rear side of the projection a is beveled, inclined, or rounded, as shown in Fig. 6, so that the double-tree D will slide over the said projection when released, after being drawn inward to allow the coupling-pin to be inserted.

The ends of the staple I are forked to receive the double-tree D, and the ends of the prongs thus formed are bent inward to overlap the forward edge of the said double-tree D,-

as shown in Fig. 1. The forked ends of the staple I are further secured to the double-tree D by bolts 1) passing through the said ends and double-tree. To the upper side of the center of the double-tree D is attached a staple, 0, so that the driver can handle the said doubletree with his switch-hook.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a horse street-car coupling, the combination, with the curved arm Gr, having recess J, and the coupling-pin I*, having annular groove N, of the disk K, having recess 0, and the disk-operating rod L, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the coupling-pin can be readily looked and released, as set forth.

2. In a horse street-car coupling, the combination, with the disk-operating rod L, of the hinged handle R and the guide-bars P S, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the said rod can be readily operated, locked, and unlocked, as set forth.

3. In a horse street-car coupling, the combination, with the curved arm G, having recess J and lugs V, and the coupling-pin 1*, having annular groove N, of the dog U, having tongue X and hook Z, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the said coupling-pin will :be securely locked and can be readily unlocked, as set forth.

4. In a horse street-car coupling,-the combination, with the draw-bar O, of the projection to, having a shoulder at its forward side and its rear side inclined, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the double-tree will be prevented from sliding rearward, while being allowed to slide forward freely, as set forth.

Witnesses: OLE A. A. MOLDAL. EDW'ARD EDGLAND, J OHN Back. 

